Braking Performance of a United States Air Force Four-Groove 49 X 17 Aircraft Tire With and Without Sipes

摘要

Braking tests were conducted to determine if large aircraft tires with laterally-cut sipes in the tread improve the braking performance on a wet surface. A tire with 1/4-inch deep by 3/16-inch spaced sipes showed improved braking performance over the nonsiped tire when tested on a wet surface. The improvement, however, becomes insignificant when the depth of the sipes is reduced to 1/8-inch, and there is no improvement when standing water is present regardless of the sipe depth. (Author)